Where to Stay in Interlaken (2026): Best Areas, Hotels & Road Trip Base Tips

Interlaken has no ski lift of its own. It sits on the valley floor between the two lakes. The skiing most visitors come for is the Jungfrau Ski Region up the Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald valleys — 211 kilometers of piste split across three separate areas: Grindelwald-Wengen, Grindelwald-First and Mürren-Schilthorn — but the holiday region also has smaller local areas closer to town, Beatenberg-Niederhorn and Habkern among them. The regional ski pass for the coming season is sold for 21 November 2026 to 25 April 2027. That makes Interlaken a commuting base rather than a ski-in one, which is exactly why it is cheaper.

The part that catches drivers out is where the road ends. Grindelwald you can drive to. Wengen and Mürren you cannot — both are car-free. The transfer point for both is the Parkhaus Lauterbrunnen beside the railway station and bus terminal, or Stechelberg at the head of the valley for the Schilthorn cable car. From Interlaken that is a 13 km drive of about 20 minutes via Wilderswil and Zweilütschinen — see our Interlaken to Lauterbrunnen route notes — and the train from Interlaken Ost takes the same 20 minutes, so on a snowy morning the car is often the worse option.

Getting to Interlaken in winter does not depend on a seasonal pass, which is not true of most Alpine bases. The approach from Bern and Thun is the A8 along the lake; the approach from Lucerne crosses the Brünig, which Alpen-Pässe lists as open year-round. The high passes that close for the winter — Furka, Grimsel, Susten and the rest — only matter if you are arriving from Valais or Ticino. From Valais the year-round options are the Lötschberg car train from Goppenstein to Kandersteg, about 15 minutes, or the Furka car train — our Zurich Airport to Zermatt guide covers how that leg works. From Ticino it is the A2 Gotthard tunnel. Current status is in our Swiss pass opening dates guide.

On price, winter is the whole argument for staying here. Federal Statistical Office figures for 2025 put Interlaken at 56 percent room occupancy in December against 92 percent in August, and Grindelwald, a major ski resort, at 65 percent against 87 percent. Only Zermatt (84 against 81) and St. Moritz (73 against 69) are genuinely busier in December than in August. You trade a 20 to 30 minute drive each morning for valley rates instead of resort rates.

Before you drive up: Switzerland has no calendar winter-tire law, but it does have a roadworthiness duty with real consequences if you cause an obstruction on summer tires. The specifics are in our Swiss winter driving rules guide, and what to insist on in a rental car is in our winter car rental guide.

Last checked 1 September 2026. Piste length, area names and ski-pass dates from jungfrau.ch; parking and car-free status as published by the Jungfrau region; occupancy from the Federal Statistical Office. Lift opening depends on snow — check the operator before you book.